blooming
by sirrryesssirrr
Summary: Emily's gardening reminds her of a certain blonde. Naomi/Emily. Femslash.


Disclaimer: I don't own these characters or people. No copyright infringement intended.

* * *

A garden bloomed colorfully in the city. It was a simple and small plot of land that was adorned with hues of pinks, whites, yellows; elevated by lush greenery that hugs the earth. It was a proper sight from the drab Bristol background of overcasts and rainy days.

Tender hands – caring ones – dug through the soil and gently placed an infant root of an Aspasia viola.

It was a wonderful flower, beautifully scented. Even in its own petals, the cream colored petals at the top and the bright yellow ones at the bottom, it had depth. That was what she ended up loving about it. At face value, it looked beautiful, yeah, but even on the surface, there were layers why it made her sigh in contentment as it adorned her small garden.

She had planted in the tulips and the daffodils and the gardenias. Her small plot of escape was already teeming with other flowers. But when she visited the local nursery just a block away from her house, she found the yellow viola so wonderful; she felt it would make her garden in progress that much better.

When the flowers bloomed happily into its own petals, all she could do was smile. Yet even after all the hard work she tried planting the rest, the viola stood out.

It ended up being her favorite.

Just like Naomi ended up being her favorite.

The first time Emily saw Naomi, the first thought that came to her mind was how much she reminded her of the Aspasia petals; how light they were. The next thought that entered her mind was just how breathtaking the other girl was, intense blue eyes, sharp clever tongue, and triumphant smirk that occasionally let out a genuine smile.

She was younger then, much more naïve, so how could she possibly know any better about what could be breathtaking or not.

All she knew was that when she did regain the basic functions of her lungs, Emily could only sigh in contentment. Her pulse had quickened, yes. And she had perspired, yes. But when the glimpse of the young blonde had dissolved into a memory, back then in the middle school halls of pubescent ignorance, all Emily could do was sigh contentedly.

As cliché as it sounded, even at that age, it still didn't make it untrue that the mere sight of Naomi was something Emily never thought she was actually looking for. It was just a surprise, these things, when you don't look for them, but when you find them, you wonder why in the hell you weren't looking for it in the first place.

Emily tried her best to find herself by the blonde. She willed the world to wait just a little bit longer before turning on its axis just so she could find a way to be around Naomi. Her heart swelled in pride when she had finally wormed her way past the blonde's defenses, even at a young age, and became some form of acquaintance. The redhead quickly learned that Naomi didn't make friends often, if at all. Acquaintance was the next best thing. Well, then. Emily was the next best thing, then, wasn't she?

"You're all right," she once told Emily. It had been the best thing that Emily probably ever heard said about her. There wasn't much to come out from her but a mumble of gratitude. It wasn't supposed to validate her life, like she needed someone else's opinion of her to feel like she mattered.

But it did. So she went straight to the local nursery and gotten herself a couple more seeds to plant to celebrate.

It was what she had wanted aside from being an acquaintance that threw her off groove and made her start digging back up.

She wasn't drunk. Aside from a swig of vodka from the bottle, she hadn't much anything else. She knew what she was doing. She knew that by putting her face closer to the other girl's that their lips would eventually meet and she would experience what kids call 'kissing'.

Emily's plan was almost shite proof, if it wasn't for the one glaring error that she had stupidly looked over called Katie.

It had gone all to hell after that. She didn't have any more courage than what little she had mustered up to kiss Naomi. And even that needed a swig of alcohol to bring up. So she couldn't possibly have any courage to defend the accused girl because of her own actions. Instead, she opted for cowardice and the likelihood that she was going to stare at people's shoes from then on. There was no way she could ever meet those blue eyes without feeling like a complete and utter wanker.

Because she wasn't an acquaintance anymore. She was just an intoxicated teenager who only wanted to try something. She wasn't all right anymore.

So after Katie's grating voice of condescension, annoyance, and homophobic insults, Emily went to her small plot of solace in the backyard and vehemently yanked the flowers out of its roots, injuring the petals in the process. After her rampage, what was left of the wreckage was what she expected: soil smudging her skirt, filling the spaces in between her fingernails, petals and leaves strewn across the backyard. What she didn't expect was the bloomed viola still standing, albeit leaning down.

Emily knelt beside the viola and cried in her dirty hands. This was the first time she had cried in a long time. Not since Katie told her just how dumb her small garden looked all those months ago when she first started.

She stopped gardening after that night.

The plot of land was filled quickly by James' toys. It looked like any other part of their backyard, like nothing ever thrived there. It made her heart ached, forcing her to look at her own shoes because looking anywhere else just made it hurt some more.

-l-

Eventually, Emily's path would cross Naomi's again, much to her delight and to the blonde's disappointment.

That first day in college made her heart skip. And when she saw her, her first thought wasn't how they last saw each other. Rather, it went back to the flower that reminded her so much of the other girl. She made a mental note to stop by the nursery after school that day.

Katie called her a 'lezza bitch' and she winced. It was too much and she wondered just why Naomi continued to put up with Katie's antics. She'd dreamt about it and wondered for hours why she would keep quiet about who kissed first. Her curiosity bothered her.

Almost as much as her own cowardice did. Almost.

She remembered back in the days of middle school when she was someone Naomi thought was all right. She wanted to get back there and she knew that it would take even more work to gain that status. But damn it, she was tired and this was college. Katie may have stolen her clothes the first day of school, but there was no way in hell that Katie will take this away from her.

Emily began gardening weekly since college started. She had gone to the local nursery and went ahead and purchased a small bed of nothing but Aspasia violas.

"What are you doing gardening again?" Katie asked her on her way out. Emily sighed and turned around to look at her sister.

"It doesn't matter. I wanted to garden again. Is that a problem?" Her twin rolled her eyes.

"No one gardens, Emily. Except grannies and cat ladies."

"Call me granny, then." The younger twin turned around and stabbed the ground with the spade she held in her hand.

"Whatever. Cover for me tonight." Katie then left, not to be seen again until the next day.

Emily shook her head and continued to plant the rest of the violas on her garden. Putting Katie at the back of her mind, she sighed contentedly.

-l-

She didn't know how she did it, but she was able to wear Naomi's defenses down again. It took a lot longer and a lot more effort, but it was worth all of it.

One day, Emily looked out of the kitchen and saw the blooming garden she had worked on for several months. She smiled and knew exactly what she would do.

-l-

"What is it?" Naomi asked.

"It's a viola. Aspasia, specifically," the redhead responded, pride in her voice.

"Well…thanks," she said, biting her lip, not really knowing what else to say. Naomi didn't get presents. She didn't understand gifts. She didn't really think she deserved them. Obviously, Emily thought otherwise.

"You don't like it."

"No, no. I do. I just…normally, people give bouquets of flowers, y'know?"

"Well, yours just happens to be in a pot. No need to put it in water or a vase. I'm saving you steps here, Naomi."

Naomi laughed in response leaving Emily with butterflies in her stomach at the sound.

"I'll make sure to water it regularly and keep it by the window. Keep it close, talk to it, even," she said, smirking. Emily only rolled her eyes. Sobering up, she held the pot in one hand as she held the redhead's in the other.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Emily knew that Naomi didn't understand why she would give her a random kind of flower, of all things. But it was uncanny just how the vibrant yellow matched the girl. Maybe she'll see it one day, like a realization that should have dawned on her ages ago. Or maybe she never will, but that was okay. Emily would love her, _loves her_, regardless.

-l-

Lying in Naomi's room, Emily rested her head on Naomi's chest as she she brushed red hair languidly. Emily looked down, as she normally did, but for a completely different reason – to see where their hands entwined and beyond that, the blurred vision of their feet touching each other.

"Thanks for my flower, Ems. It's bloomin' well."

"You already thanked me before."

"Yeah, but that's just because I got somethin'."

"What's different now?"

"Dunno. Just figured you must have thought about me before giving me something from your garden. It's nice, to be thought of."

Emily looked up and kissed the girl on the cheek. "I think about you plenty."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"I think about you quite a bit, too."

"Great. Now, can we think about each other tomorrow, after we've slept?" Emily then turned around and gestured for Naomi to follow her, to hold her from behind. The blonde obliged and snuggled closer to the redhead. She held the calloused hands (from all that gardening) in hers and placed a gentle kiss on the girl's shoulder.

"Yeah, all right." She yawned and nuzzled her nose into the girl's hair. It smelled, not surprisingly, of flowers.

"I am. More than, actually," Emily mumbled, not much beyond a whisper. She smirked as it reminded her of memories from years past.

"What?"

"Nothing. Sleep, now."

Emily pulled closer and they held each other under the covers, tangled in one another. It was something lovely, something nice.

Her eyes opened a crack and saw a shadow coming through the window and painting itself on the wall. She looked up and saw that the potted plant she had given to Naomi was sitting, in full bloom, on the window sill.

She smiled before finally closing her eyes, bringing their joined hands together and kissing the back of Naomi's hand. The other girl was already sleeping peacefully.

At that very moment, Emily thought just how breathtaking everything was. Much like it normally was when it came to the girl that held her closely, lovingly. Getting the general functions of her lungs once again, she, too, drifted into sleep.

The yellow viola transforming into the pretty blonde was the last image that settled into her thoughts.

She sighed in contentment.

-l-

End


End file.
